Voice of the people (letter).

Ideas And Actions

September 26, 1996|By Genevieve Shea, SLW.

DES PLAINES — Besides suggesting a new parlor game of reading book passages and having someone try to guess the author, reader Ken Wolmer ("Who's the terrorist?" Voice, Sept. 13), did little to make a clear statement about Al Gore and/or the Unabomber.

I did not hear the WLS-AM personality referred to in Mr. Wolmer's letter about listeners not being able to guess who wrote what, but, as described in that letter, it seems that the "personality" misused the airwaves to discredit Gore's plea for concern for our environment.

The Unabomber's manifesto and Gore's book, "Earth in the Balance," both warn about the ways industrialism and consumerism affect our environment and our culture. This is no way implies that the authors share answers to the problems. No thinking person condones poverty as an excuse for crime. Nor do we justify white-collar crime on the basis of the drive for wealth and power. In the same way, we recognize that the Unabomber's method of protesting the effects of industrialism is not acceptable.

Al Gore, on the other hand, not only stated industrialism's effect on our environment but he offered constructive means of counteracting it. He did something about suggesting attitude and lifestyle changes to make a positive difference.

Perhaps Wolmer's parlor game can be revised to ask not only who said it, but also what he did about it. That revision may help raise awareness that one person can make a difference. Individuals decide whether that difference will be destructive or constructive.